Daughter of the Jianghu (Part 4)
When Lao Ju said he would not stop, he meant that he would not stop unless he arrived at the place he had decided to go to. Otherwise, whether it was the middle of the night or in a storm, he would always ride on his horse with his back straight, firmly and silently driving the carriage.
That night, they passed through Menghuling. The dense and leafy trees in the forest layered together, which cushioned the rapid downpour.
Bian Hongqiu, fully armed in a straw raincoat and bamboo hat, lifted the brim slightly in a relatively sparsely wooded area. It had rained for days since he entered Lanling City, and he hadn't seen the moon in ages. The forest was pitch black, devoid of any light. He touched his stinging cheek—the swelling he'd gotten on Xiliuhai hadn't gone down, and even now, half his face was covered in tiny, red scars.
No one spoils him anymore.
Lao Ju was a very good person. The journey had not been peaceful. The states that Xi Zhongting had suppressed only managed to stabilize the overall situation. The imperial envoys sent by the court were constantly at odds with the "local tyrants," with scores dating back more than a decade and countless to settle, not to mention these people's insatiable ambitions for power. While wars had ceased, banditry was even more prevalent.
The three of them had been involved in many affairs of life, and thanks to Lao Ju they had barely avoided getting into trouble, and they even had enough energy to help many exiles.
By the time Bian Hongqiu was thirteen, he'd never seen anyone like Lao Ju. He relied on his two swords, seemingly unstoppable, to overcome any obstacle. He didn't resort to them, never resorting to violence, but never bothered to kill the elderly, the weak, women, or children. Much like the Mulan sword Song Jingyan had given him, it looked simple and unassuming in its sheath, yet unsheathed, its razor-sharp edge revealed.
If I have to say something bad, it's probably that I'm obsessed with my age.
Especially a young man like Bian Hongqiu.
When Lao Ju faced Bian Hongqiu, all his tender, "tiger sniffing a rose" affection disappeared. He said he wouldn't help Bian Hongqiu, and he wouldn't. In the first few days after leaving Daohai City, Bian Hongqiu starved and did nothing, but he didn't persuade or force her. Later, when Bian Hongqiu couldn't bear it anymore, even when she gave up her dignity and followed her grandmother to beg on the streets, he didn't even raise an eyebrow.
The first group of bandits they encountered was about ten days' walk outside Daohai City. Grandma, relying on her age and the tired look on her face, was properly placed in the rear by the old man. Bian Hongqiu wasn't treated so well. Even though his legs were so trembling that he couldn't walk, the old man still carried him to the front.
At that time, Bian Hongqiu held the knife that Lao Ju generously gave him as if it were a shackle, and stood stupidly in front of the bandit. The deadly weapon had already soared to his eyebrows, but he could not dodge or scream. Until Lao Ju was distracted and chopped off the bandit's weapon with a knife, he scolded him like thunder: "You are so old, and you can't even use a knife!"
Lao Ju knocked down a lot of them by himself, as if he had not encountered any trouble, and kept going to catch the bus.
Bian Hongqiu was stunned at first, then huddled on the cart and sobbed, "They said it's okay for girls not to be good at martial arts, there are other things they can do."
Without even turning his head, Lao Ju asked: "So, can you read or embroider? Even this grandma knows how to coax other people's children to make money. What else can you do except hide behind her and be a half-beggar?"
Bian Hongqiu didn't know.
He didn't have to do anything in Prince Liang's Mansion before, but he seemed very useful.
His weakness and crying were useless. The second time he encountered a highway robber, Lao Ju still held him by his side. He couldn't use Lao Ju's knife, but at least he knew how to dodge. The thought of reaching the shore on the Xinglu River never occurred to him again. He had even been a beggar before. If he chose to escape from danger at this time, waiting to be stabbed through the neck, it would be a real loss.
Perhaps even Song Jingyan, who raised him, did not expect that what supported Bian Hongqiu to overcome the most difficult period and grow bones was his little self-esteem that he had sacrificed.
Grandma was also wearing a straw raincoat and a straw hat, and had fallen asleep leaning against Bian Hongqiu's back.
At this moment, amid the sound of the incessant rain hitting the leaves, Bian Hongqiu sensed something was amiss. He reached out a hand to steady Grandma, preventing her from falling, and turned halfway to Old Ju, "Uncle Ju..."
Lao Ju was the first to raise his finger at him, his brows furrowing uncomfortably. This was because Bian Hongqiu had refused to use his full name, a rude gesture, and had taken it upon himself to address him. Even the heartless Meng Shizhuang simply called him "old man."
The horse stopped and kicked its hooves nervously, leaving a trail of muddy prints in the woods.
This place was right at the foot of a cliff. Lao Ju woke Grandma, led the horse, and told her to duck down in a shallow ditch beneath the cliff, then pushed the cart into the bushes. Bian Hongqiu no longer needed his calls. She reached out and touched the small bow she kept close to her body in her straw raincoat, then followed him, lightly treading in the direction of the movement.
Menghu Ridge is outside Lanling City.
Lanling City was in turmoil. Even with flawless documents and travel permits, they were stopped for two days. Outside the city, the land was divided, and the local tyrants, afraid to commit acts of violence within the city, took their own actions outside. Bian Hongqiu and Lao Ju had walked a hundred steps forward when a large blaze of fire appeared in the woods.
It was the dead of night and raining heavily. Unless there was murder and robbery, why would there be such a big noise?
Bian Hongqiu, hunched in the bushes, watched a group of fierce-looking men casually carrying a few planks to block torches, stooping and laughing. He listened carefully and could tell they were inspecting the goods. The sound of silver ingots and jewels sliding between fingers was melodious, and the bandits' arrogant voices grew louder. About a quarter of an hour later, the leader, dressed in black, commanded his men to carry the boxes up the mountain.
He was about to turn quietly when he realized they weren't done yet. The remaining men, in pairs, laboriously lifted a wooden pole with two or three people strung along it. He heard the bandits' voices, faintly knocking against his ears through the rain, "Take them all to the mountain for 'stockpiling.'"
What is “inventory”?
Bian Hongqiu thought about it and just felt that he wanted to force these people to serve as the reserve army of the stronghold?
That person should be alive.
Then another person spoke up: "What goods are there to stockpile? The new governor has opened the city gates, allowing trade to flow in and out. Who needs food?"
"I know, I'm keeping it in stock for target practice!"
"It's not good to keep too much inventory. If you compete with the new governor, you might lose one day. We won't be able to hold on for long. Why should we keep so many people as a loophole?"
The more Bian Hongqiu listened, the more confused he became. Whenever he was undecided, he would first look at the person next to him.
But Lao Ju's face looked uglier than ever. He clenched his knife and carefully counted the gang of bandits. There were more than 20 people, which was no problem. So he stepped on the raindrops and went up to block the road.
Bian Hongqiu was shocked. She didn't expect that Lao Ju could be so impulsive.
He glanced around, but didn't rush in to cause trouble. He pulled out his small bow—a bow he had made himself. As Lao Ju had said, not only was he not good at martial arts, but his embroidery and reading were also not very impressive. To be honest, he felt that the only skill he had secretly studied, carving, was somewhat decent.
In the past, he used stones in Prince Liang's mansion. Jade was too expensive, and no one else in the mansion was interested in it. He was embarrassed to ask Song Jingyan to accept his hobby, so he picked up stones of all sizes and carved them into finished products. He then used these finished products to practice his strength, and finally the room was filled with stone chips.
Even Song Jingyan didn't know where the waste in his house came from.
Maybe you can guess what Bian Hongqiu is doing, but without seeing his works, you will assume that he cannot learn this skill well, and you will not take the initiative to point it out to criticize him.
If stone can be carved, wood is certainly no problem.
During his two days in Lanling City, Bian Hongqiu traded his wood carvings for a good sum of money and even wrote letters for others, which only required literacy, not a comprehensive understanding of history and current events. He shamelessly competed with the scholar for customers, undercutting his offer by two cents, until the scholar, infuriated, began to curse at him.
Bian Hongqiu finally found some fun during his days of wandering.
The money he earned from writing letters was enough to buy the worst quality bowstring material.
However, the first time he used this small bow, he only shot through the robber's legs. His fingers were strong, but his arms were not strong enough. He thought of Hengbo, who had practiced riding and shooting with him since childhood, and realized for the first time that hitting the target from a hundred paces away was not such a simple task.
But he now has more than enough strength to do some small movements.
Bian Hongqiu found the right angle and shot down the torches that the group of people were using to light the mountain road. In order to free up manpower to carry people and goods, they had extinguished the torches just now and only kept the tail end to take care of it.
After walking on the road at night for a long time and encountering ghosts, and it was a rainy day that made it difficult to move, the group of people suddenly panicked, thinking that they saw the soul-locking hooks of the Black and White Impermanence. The timid ones started screaming, and even scared the calm ones. Then they heard the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground, and they wanted to run towards their nest like headless flies.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Lao Ju grabbed a knife and rushed forward, cutting melons and vegetables as if he was in an empty space, and harvested several lives without even making a sound for these people to scream.
After making sure there was no movement, Bian Hongqiu hurried forward to help.
He was trying to loosen the rope by pinching the tip of the arrow, but Lao Ju cut it with a knife. Just as he was about to check on the people he had taken hostage, these people, who had just been lifeless and tied up like "cargo", suddenly jumped up. Bian Hongqiu leaned back and almost fell down the hillside. Lao Ju blocked the wooden stick that the man had pulled out to fight back with a knife.
Bian Hongqiu frantically pulled out his small bow, thinking: Have they fallen for a trap? Is this a bandit's plan?
At the same time, a crisp voice, clearly belonging to a young girl, rang out: "Damn it! This is rotten Lanling City. This is just a case of thieves robbing each other..."
She came to her senses halfway through her words.
It's simple, the scale of this gang-on-gang fight is too small, and one of the gang members is a child who is not even six feet tall.
Bian Hongqiu no longer cared about his image. He sat down and rubbed his aching ankle, then took out a fire starter from his arms and covered it in his palm.
In the firelight, the heroic and bright face of the girl was illuminated. When she saw Lao Ju's righteous face, she subconsciously put away the stick in her hand and wanted to turn around to look at Bian Hongqiu. The moment her eyes fell on him, she immediately took several steps back as if facing a great enemy, and sprained her ankle in the same way as Bian Hongqiu.
Bian Hongqiu did not miss the silent expression of "where did this ugly monster come from" in her eyes.
On this dangerous rainy night, he was actually feeling depressed. He hadn't looked in the mirror for a while. How bad could his face look to scare a female warrior directly?
The "female warrior" rubbed her ankle with a grin, waving her hand to signal the people behind her not to panic. She said clearly, "Thank you both heroes for your sincere rescue, but we are only here to get up the mountain. Don't worry about it. There are vicious tigers on the Tiger Ridge that eat people. Leave quickly."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
